Zack Kassian could be described as one of many things, depending on who you ask. A thug. A talented young forward. A malicious hitter. Misunderstood. Overhyped. Underrated.

To his friends and family, he is a humble and hard working 21-year-old who had to overcome adversity at a very young age (Kassian was only eight when his father Michael passed away suddenly from a heart attack). To his teammates in Peterborough and Windsor, he was a leader, an offensive force, and a physical presence. To his coaches, he was an intriguing combination of skill and size, and a player who lacked consistency but made up for it with stretches of dominance.

It may take a few years for the... 21 year old... to get there of course!

Ummmm patience dear Nuckies!

If there is one thing that I found discouraging about Kassian, it was his complete lack of game when it came to trash talk. I noticed one game when he totally backed down from a verbal beating, then he disappeared for the remainder of the match. I remember hearing all about it the next morning from Ferraro on the radio. Chalk it up to a rookie who is used to being the big kid on the block, but received a rude awakening by veteran pros. He's an easy target because of his size and abilities, so I hope he can learn something from Kes/Burr/Lappy and gain a little more confidence in this area, should only help him in becoming an imposing forward.

He'll get there. I look forward to watching his progression over the next couple years.

At camp he comes to a team he is already part of, not joining one for a playoff push and replacing a highly touted first round pick. I think he comes to camp ready to carve out a role for himself. From what I saw I think they want him to play top 9. Hopefully his conditioning will be better and he won't look so gassed out there.

The reality is that AV and MG had to play him given that they gave up Cody to get him. But I would suspect he will be on a short leash with respect to effort and conditioning. If he is not ready he will go to Chicago for the year.

He has a ton of potential but so far it is just that. I think if he comes to camp and feels he is one of the guys we may see the player that MG had hoped he was getting. Its hard to say if the Canucks want him to fight or not. They may want him to play tough but stay away from the fights. You know, the whistle to whistle mentality.

But I can't forget how much bigger everyone played the first few games we had him. So hopefully he recognizes that that is part of his role, to allow others to play bigger which means he has to be able to be the enforcer when called upon, just not a 4th line goon.

a) I agree HW once the league starts up again he will be better he will be battling for a real spot instead of being the new guyb) AV MUST play him in all situations and give him some time to grow, fine keep him off the ice up/down 1 goal in the last 5 minutes but he needs to avg 12 - 15 mins a night to get betterc) don't really care about the article, it is what is in him that will make him a success or a failure